Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the company that distributed Simplicity-brand bassinets, alleging it continued to sell dangerous bassinets despite knowledge that a design flaw led to a baby's death last year. A second baby died in August after she slipped through a gap in a Simplicity bassinet's side and asphyxiated. When they closed the gap, it cost Simplicity 4 cents per bassinet to prevent the hazard, the...

Two more babies have died in recalled bassinets that were the subject of a Chicago Tribune investigation, and federal safety regulators are again pleading with families to return the products. The Consumer Product Safety Commission also said that it formally referred its investigation of the manufacturer and its subsequent owners to the Department of Justice. An official with the Justice Department declined to comment. The deaths in Texas and Georgia, announced by safety...

Federal safety regulators and Graco Children's Products knew two weeks ago that bassinets sold under the Graco name had the same dangerous design that caused two babies' deaths but did not alert the public as part of a larger recall, the Tribune has found. On Wednesday, Graco told the Tribune that 200,000 of the Simplicity-made bassinets recalled last month may have carried its brand name under a licensing agreement it struck with the now-defunct manufacturer. Consumers looking at...

The family of a child who died this year in a Winnie the Pooh bassinet has sued the Walt Disney Co., alleging the company allowed sales of the bassinets despite a flawed design that had been linked to another baby's death a year earlier. The bassinet had a drop-down side for easy access, but the design created a gap where babies could slide through and hang to death. Kennedy Brotherton Jones was 6 months old when she was strangled on Aug. 21. Shortly after Kennedy's death, the...

The family of a child who died this year in a Winnie the Pooh bassinet has sued the Walt Disney Co., alleging the company allowed sales of the bassinets despite a flawed design that had been linked to another baby's death a year earlier. The bassinet had a drop-down side for easy access, but the design created a gap where babies could slide through and hang to death. Kennedy Brotherton Jones was 6 months old when she was strangled on Aug. 21. Shortly after Kennedy's death, the...

Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the company that distributed Simplicity-brand bassinets, alleging it continued to sell dangerous bassinets despite knowledge that a design flaw led to a baby's death last year. A second baby died in August after she slipped through a gap in a Simplicity bassinet's side and asphyxiated. When they closed the gap, it cost Simplicity 4 cents per bassinet to prevent the hazard, the...

Federal regulators urged retailers to pull more Simplicity bassinets from their shelves after Illinois attorney general staffers purchased models that could kill a baby but were excluded from a federal alert issued last week. The most troubling aspect of the purchase, which Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan announced Thursday, was that the potentially deadly bassinets looked like safe versions. Two bassinets bought at Wal-Mart online carried a note to customers that they were not among those recalled.

Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan on Wednesday urged federal safety regulators to curb the sale of secondhand products recalled for potentially deadly flaws. Madigan's push came after her office found more than 400 recalled bassinets for sale, primarily on Craigslist. The bassinets, sold under the Simplicity, Graco and Winnie the Pooh labels, have a bad design that caused the deaths of two babies. Madigan's investigation reveals a key flaw in the process of recalling dangerous consumer...

Federal regulators on Thursday night directed retailers across the country to stop selling and to recall nearly 900,000 dangerous bassinets, one of the largest child product safety actions in years. The move followed a day of confusion for consumers, retailers and even regulators who were unclear about which bassinets contained a design problem similar to one that resulted in the deaths of two babies. In fact, a Tribune reporter on Thursday bought two bassinets at Baby Depot at Burlington Coat...

Facing criticism from Senate leaders for their handling of the recall of potentially deadly bassinets, federal safety regulators and Graco Children's Products defended their actions and said they alerted the public as soon as they responsibly could. U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) had criticized the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission based on a report in the Tribune that said the company and agency took two weeks...

Two more babies have died in recalled bassinets that were the subject of a Chicago Tribune investigation, and federal safety regulators are again pleading with families to return the products. The Consumer Product Safety Commission also said that it formally referred its investigation of the manufacturer and its subsequent owners to the Department of Justice. An official with the Justice Department declined to comment. The deaths in Texas and Georgia, announced by safety...

Fannie, Freddie takeover The Treasury Department executed a sweeping takeover of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in a move aimed at expanding the pool of money available for home finance and trying to arrest a plunge in housing prices that endangers the nation's economy. What's next: While the basic elements of the plan will begin taking effect quickly, its longer-term elements -- including a provision for shrinking the giant firms after the crisis has eased -- are...

Illinois Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan on Wednesday urged federal safety regulators to curb the sale of secondhand products recalled for potentially deadly flaws. Madigan's push came after her office found more than 400 recalled bassinets for sale, primarily on Craigslist. The bassinets, sold under the Simplicity, Graco and Winnie the Pooh labels, have a bad design that caused the deaths of two babies. Madigan's investigation reveals a key flaw in the process of recalling dangerous consumer...

When a child is killed by a dangerous product, the first priority for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission should be to make sure no more children are hurt or killed in the same way. It needs to act quickly and decisively. But the commission, the regulatory agency charged with ensuring the safety of most children's products, repeatedly fails to do that. Congress put the commission on notice earlier this year, passing a major overhaul in its operations. And still these people act like they're...

When a child is killed by a dangerous product, the first priority for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission should be to make sure no more children are hurt or killed in the same way. It needs to act quickly and decisively. But the commission, the regulatory agency charged with ensuring the safety of most children's products, repeatedly fails to do that. Congress put the commission on notice earlier this year, passing a major overhaul in its operations. And still these people act like they're...

Federal safety regulators and Graco Children's Products knew two weeks ago that bassinets sold under the Graco name had the same dangerous design that caused two babies' deaths but did not alert the public as part of a larger recall, the Tribune has found. On Wednesday, Graco told the Tribune that 200,000 of the Simplicity-made bassinets recalled last month may have carried its brand name under a licensing agreement it struck with the now-defunct manufacturer. Consumers looking at...

McCain gets GOP nod Arizona Sen. John McCain's acceptance of the Republican nomination for president capped a convention on the bank of the Mississippi River that was jumbled by Hurricane Gustav's arrival on the Gulf Coast, which forced the GOP to cancel most of Monday's events. At 72, McCain made history as the country's oldest first-time presidential nominee. His running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin, 44, also made history Thursday when she was formally installed as the first woman...

Federal regulators urged retailers to pull more Simplicity bassinets from their shelves after Illinois attorney general staffers purchased models that could kill a baby but were excluded from a federal alert issued last week. The most troubling aspect of the purchase, which Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan announced Thursday, was that the potentially deadly bassinets looked like safe versions. Two bassinets bought at Wal-Mart online carried a note to customers that they were not among those recalled.